Beyond Tradition

In recent years Caribbean historians have moved beyond the traditional interpretation of the regions historical experience leading to a more dynamic and accurate re-creation of events and processes. Traditional writings on Caribbean history focuses on European activity, treating the territories as `objects of history and glorifying the exploits of military and naval commanders, and the activities of colonial rulers and administrators both in the metropole and in the colonies. While later changes in the direction of the writing of Caribbean history sought to make the territories o f the region `subject rather than `objects of history, such writings remained fixed on planters, plantations and related commercial activities. In Beyond Tradition some of the Caribbeans younger generation of historians reflect new directions in the historiography off the region by extending the focus beyond the plantation and the dominant sugar culture to expose a vast range of dynamic economic, social and political activities previously ignored or considered insignificant. Thus, they introduce more actors, discuss non-agricultural forms of employment and examine the roles of non-elite males and females and those of Asians, Africans and Europeans. Together, these new writings represent a conscious effort to adjust the direction of Caribbean historiography by refining the analytical model to incorporate the full range of historical experiences.